In the hangout I mentioned some papers on the lower brain structures, particularly, the hypothalamus.
These systems read the digested contents of the cortex as mostly presented by the hippocampus, processed, and output with projections to the PFC (prefrontal cortex) to select/initiate actions.
Here are some links to these older posts:
Going away from the cortex: these systems dovetail very nicely into the lowest brain structures that directly run the body. ONe that is critical is the vestibular system. This is key to standing erect and the sense that in brings into the cortex is critical to the sense of “You” in your episodic memories. What happens to “you” if it is broken?
And how does this all work to help make a loose bag of bones stand erect:
and
I would be remiss if I did not point out that as the information streams up to the thalamus and on to the cortex, there are taps off to these old brain structures. Some of these are very powerful.